Obama pushes preschool plan, won’t discuss cost DECATUR, Ga. (AP) — Raising hopes among parents who want preschool for all, President Barack Obama on Thursday rolled out a plan to vastly expand government-funded early childhood while keeping the price tag a secret. Republicans, wary of high costs and questionable outcomes, made clear they have no intention of signing a blank check. Setting up yet another clash with Republicans over spending and the proper scope of government, Obama in his S...

Westerm Yell County residents work to keep school openWith its school district facing potential consolidation, two local small-town communities have organized a campaign of fundraising efforts to help raise money to keep their schools’ doors open. Residents of Belleville, home to Western Yell County’s elementary school, and Havana, home to the high school, have coordinated a series of fundraisers in hopes of raising a portion of the estimated $180,000 they believe they need to keep the school dis...

Grad student sues, says C-plus cost her $1.3M EASTON, Pa. (AP) — Talk about grade inflation. Graduate student Megan Thode wasn’t happy about the C-plus she received for one class, saying the mediocre grade kept her from getting her desired degree and becoming a licensed therapist — and, as a result, cost her $1.3 million in lost earnings. Now Thode is suing her professor and Lehigh University in Bethlehem, claiming monetary damages and seeking a grade change. A judge is hearing testimony ...

Wisconsin scientists help search for alien life MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are helping search for evidence of alien life not by looking into outer space, but by studying some rocks right here on Earth. Some of the rocks are up to 3.5 billion years old. The scientists are looking for crucial information to understand how life might have arisen elsewhere in the universe and guide the search for life on Mars one day. “There’s a story always hidden in...

Dardanelle School District board tables school security proposalThe one school resource officer who works in the Dardanelle School District is spread pretty thin, and the officer must spend time covering all the classroom buildings in the district. The school district has looked into the possibility of getting another SRO from a local law enforcement agency, but that project has come to a halt in recent days. According to DSD Superintendent John Thompson, members of the Dardanelle School Board tabled the p...

Making a differenceEditor’s note: This is part of an ongoing series of stories that focuses on people who are making a difference in education in the Arkansas River Valley. POTTSVILLE — For the Pottsville School District and the Pottsville community, the expression rings true: It takes a village to bring up a child. From the moment children enter the elementary school doors to the moment they toss their caps at graduation, they are under an umbrella of supportiv...

Cooper recognized by Hall of FameFor Hal Cooper, who directed the Arkansas Tech University band for 32 years, the joy of band directing was in the product. “Conducting is a process of compiling a program, and then taking care of the technical aspects of it, to the point where you can move into the art of it and create something that will communicate with people,” he said. “And then have it come off where everybody in the ensemble, including the conductor, gets cold shivers.” ...

Ohio school cancels prom over water balloon fight CINCINNATI (AP) — An Ohio high school has canceled its prom to punish students for a prank: a massive water balloon fight at lunch. The Cincinnati Enquirer reported the principal of Withrow High School in Cincinnati says students used social media last month to plan the prank. Principal Sharon Johnson says staff found out and tried to prevent it. She made announcements the day of the planned prank, warning students the prom would be canceled i...

Coliseum filled for Time-OutHigh school senior Taylor Walker of Texarkana had never visited Arkansas Tech University before Thursday, but she’s known for months that she wanted her college experience to take place in Russellville. Walker was among approximately 3,000 visitors on the Arkansas Tech campus Thursday for the annual Time-Out for Tech preview day for high school seniors considering enrollment at the university. “I really like this school,” said Walker, who plan...

Tragedy for dinosaurs, opportunity for mammals, us WASHINGTON (AP) — New research pinpoints how the torch passed from one dominant creature on Earth to another, from the brutish dinosaur to the crafty mammal. Two studies published Thursday in the journal Science better explain the Earth-shaking consequences of a catastrophic cosmic collision 66 million years ago when a comet or asteroid smashed into the Gulf of Mexico. The crash seemed to end the reign of the dinosaurs. And it gave way to the ...

Sheriff increasing security at Pope County schoolsWith the growing concern for school safety, solutions are being considered to keep kids safe across the nation. A new program created by the Pope County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) will increase deputies’ presence at schools in the county. Pope County Sheriff Aaron DuVall said Wednesday that security is a big concern for schools, law enforcement and parents. He said his deputies have trained with local and state professionals and are prepared to d...

RHS showcased as model school for engineering programRepresentatives of 20 Arkansas schools gathered at Russellville High School on Wednesday for a Project Lead the Way orientation meeting, where the representatives discussed potentially implementing engineering programs into their curriculums. The meeting’s location was no coincidence — Project Lead the Way chose RHS as a model school for other districts to observe, as it boasts one of the top facilities in the state. “They started this program...

Collegiate Competition and Exhibition winners announcedRiver Valley Arts Center executive director Betty LaGrone announces the award winners for the Collegiate Competition and Exhibition. Dylan Eakin’s ceramic and acrylic torso entitled “Looking Up” won Best of Show. Eakin, a student at University of the Ozarks, was awarded $150.00 and the opportunity to do a show in the Arts Center Gallery in December 2013. First place and a $100.00 cash award went to Arkansas Tech University student Amber Naylor...

Group remembers classmate with surpriseMore than 50 years ago, Arkansas Tech student Wanda Jean McDaniel — better known as ‘Mac’ to her friends — took several classmates residing in Caraway Hall under her wing and tutored them in mathematics. On Wednesday, those classmates paid Mac’s gift forward. Lou Nell McCraw Davis and Shirley Drewry Dodd, members of the Arkansas Tech Class of 1959, represented their fellow “Caraway Hall Girls” of the late 1950s by surprising current Arkansas T...

Cannon Cobb has a passion for wordsWhen Cannon Cobb heard the word “bungalow,” he breathed a sigh of relief. The eighth grader from Pottsville Junior High stood on the stage at the Pope County Spelling Bee, he and one other student — Ryan Morris, a sixth grader from Dover — the only ones left in the competition. He had felt nervous throughout the night, probably because he’d been here before. In sixth grade, he placed second in the competition; last year he didn’t place, misspe...

Black History Month events begin at universityAs Lindsey McDaniel stood back and watched the balloons fly away on a blustery and cold afternoon on the Arkansas Tech University campus on Friday, she felt the pride that Black History Month was designed to create. “I see a great deal of progress,” said McDaniel, president of the Arkansas Tech African-American Student Association and sophomore biology major from Morrilton. “Our president is Barack Obama, and he is a black man. There are many ...

Western Yell County School District looking for annexationThe loss of 20 students may be the final straw that pushes the Western Yell County School District to shutter its doors next year. The district is currently in the talking stages with the school districts that border the Western Yell County School District looking for one that might be willing to annex Western Yell into its district as a fiscal crisis worsens. Western Yell County Superintendent Bradley Spikes told The Courier Friday his distri...

Land deal for housing project close to resolutionConstruction crews may be closer to beginning work on a student housing project on the site of the old Riverside Furniture factory. Developers are hoping the modern-designed apartment facility for Arkansas Tech University students will hopefully begin to rise soon, but there are a still few specific details that must be sifted through first. The land deal for the student housing project may be nearing a resolution for the site at the old River...

2 new doctor of nursing programs approvedLITTLE ROCK (AP) — The Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board has approved two new doctor of nursing practice degree programs in the state. The board meeting Friday in Little Rock approved the programs at the University of Central Arkansas and at the University of Arkansas. The board also approved a master of science in business administration program at Arkansas Tech University; an associate of applied science in cardiovascular technolo...

Healthier schools: Goodbye candy and greasy snacks WASHINGTON (AP) — Goodbye candy bars and sugary cookies. Hello baked chips and diet sodas. The government for the first time is proposing broad new standards to make sure all foods sold in schools are more healthful, a change that would ban the sale of almost all candy, high-calorie sports drinks and greasy foods on campus. Under new rules the Department of Agriculture proposed Friday, school vending machines would start selling water, lower-c...